14 July 2008

GPPi organizes panel for the World Conference of Humanitarian Studies

GPPi will organize a panel on “Enhancing Transatlantic Governance of Humanitarian Crises” as part of the World Conference of Humanitarian Studies, to be held in Groningen, the Netherlands from 4-8 February 2009.

The panel seeks to identify areas for enhancing transatlantic cooperation in the realm of humanitarian assistance. Far from being local events with only local effects, most humanitarian crises today create truly transnational problems. Beyond a shared desire to help, the transatlantic partners face a range of common challenges when natural disasters in developing countries merge with weak governance, chronic poverty, armed conflict and political instability to create ‘complex emergencies’. However, despite important activities and significant experiences in humanitarian assistance on both sides of the Atlantic, the related discussions often seem to run in parallel without merging to weave a genuine transatlantic strategic dialogue. While important efforts at enhanced donor coordination have been made, there remain significant political and conceptual differences relating to humanitarian values, concepts, and policy on both sides of the Atlantic.

GPPi’s contribution to the World Conference of Humanitarian Studies is part of its current research project “Raising the bar: Enhancing transatlantic governance of disaster response and preparedness".

For further information on the panel, please contact Andrea Binder.

For information on the research project, please contact Kelly Johnson.

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